Basketball betting odds

What are Basketball Odds?

Are you interested in basketball and sports betting, but you're unfamiliar with the world of bookmakers? Don't worry, Wincomparator is here to help you - you can find out everything you need to know about the Basketball Betting Odds that are offered by these sports betting sites.

So first of all, what are odds that are offered on basketball games? These odds are values than be found on any online Sportsbook which offers a basketball betting function. To put it simply, these encrypted values are directly related to the event on which you want to bet, and will always play a central role in the basketball betting game. It is directly on these odds that you will place any basketball bet, rather than placing a bet on the event of your choice. For example, if you want to bet on the victory of the Toronto Raptors over the Chicago Bulls in the NBA, you will actually be placing money on the bet 'Raptors to Win' rather than on the team itself.

The second point to note is that the value of basketball odds will always be directly related to the probability of an event to occur. As such, the more likely a sports bet is to be a winner, the lower the odds offered on that bet will be. The reverse is also true, if an outcome is less likely to occur, the odds offered on a bet related to that outcome will be relatively higher. The same rationale applies to any sport and any event you want to bet on. To illustrate this further, we will look again at the example of an NBA fixture between the Toronto Raptors and the Chicago Bulls, for which the Canadians are undoubtedly favourites.

For this match in which the quality of both sides is totally unbalanced - Toronto have consistently placed near the top of the Eastern Conference in the last few years, while Chicago have been finishing at the bottom end of the Conference standings - the odds proposed on 'Raptors to Win' will be very low (e.g. 6/5), while the odds proposed on the bet 'Bulls to win will be much higher (e.g. 5/1). And so, an important point to remember is this: the more likely your team is to win a match, the less grand the winnings for your kitty will be. This leads us to another very important point - the value of odds proposed will always have a huge influence on the potential earnings or a bet, as it is these odds that are used to determine the pot.

By using the simple formula - Stake Bet x Odds = Potential Gains - you can instantly discover the amount that you stand to receive in the case of a winning bet. We can show this by using the same scenario as above, an example of placing a £10 bet on the match between the Raptors and the Bulls.

• 'Raptors to Win': Stake Bet £10 x Odds 6/5 = £12 Potential Gains
• 'Bulls to Win': Stake Bet £10 x Odds 5/1 = £50 Potential Gains

By completing this calculation, it is easy to see that a winning bet on a Toronto victory will yield less returns than a bet on Chicago, due to their increased likelihood of winning the game. It is then on you, the bettor, to choose the strategy you want to adopt - either to build up your pot slowly by betting on the reliable favourites, or taking a bigger risk to bet on the outsiders at higher odds. Such is the dilemma of basketball betting online, on who will be the king of the court.

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Why Compare Basketball Betting Odds?

As we have just seen, the value of basketball odds offered by bookmakers will always have a direct impact on the potential gains of your sports bet. As the formula used to calculate your potential winnings is one of multiplication; it is clear that the higher the odds are the more you stand to win in the case of a successful bet. As the different bookmakers on the sports betting market (Bet365, 888Sport, Betway, etc.) can all offer different odds on the same bet, it becomes clear that comparing these odds on a basketball match is the best thing to do for your wallet - the winnings of your betting slip could vary greatly! We can again demonstrate this using the example above, this time taking the example of a Chicago Victory:

• I bet £100 on 'Bulls to Win', offered at odds of 6/1 at Bet365 - Potential Gains are £600
• I bet £100 on 'Bulls to Win', offered at odds of 29/5 at 888Sport - Potential Gains are £5.80
• I bet £100 on 'Bulls to Win', offered at odds of 11/2 at Betway - Potential Gains are £550

This calculation shows that for the same 'risky' bet on a surprise outcome for the Bulls, the outsiders, you stand to earn an additional £50 by placing your bet with Bet365 rather than with Betway. The value of comparing basketball odds on the match of your choice thus becomes evident, especially when you consider that it is never the same bookmaker that offers the best odds on the market - in another match you choose to bet on it could bet 888Sport and not Bet365 that offers the more enticing odds values. With regards this aspect of sports betting there can be only one solution - register with the maximum number of bookmakers to ensure that you can always take advantage of the best odds available on the market.

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How to Bet on Basketball - The odds that can vary

In addition to this variance amongst bookmakers, it is important to know that odds values can evolve according to time, even at the same sports betting site. Whether due to the injury of a key player, or a change in head coach mere hours before tip-off, there are many factors that surround a basketball game that can influence the probabilities of different bets, and thus the values of odds proposed.

To take the example of Raptors vs Bulls for a final time, if two members of Toronto's starting 5 fall victim to injury just hours before the match is due to start, the probability of the Canadian side to win will decrease, and so the odds offered on their victory will increase (e.g. from 6/5 to 8/5). In the same way, it makes sense that the odds offered on a Chicago victory will be reduced by bookmakers (e.g. from 5/1 to 19/5). As such, don't wait too long to compare the odds offered on a basketball match - to proceed in an instant, you can take advantage of our Basketball Odds Comparator, available for every basketball game you could wish to bet on.

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